The Grand Old Duke of York

On the heels of Humpty Dumpty, I was looking for more fun movement rhymes to play with Veronika. I remember doing this particular one every time Travis and I attended a class at Gymboree when he was little, and realized I hadn’t yet done so with Veronika. Time to amend that!

Lie on your back, with your child facing you, and holding them securely.

Now recite the words:

Oh the Grand Old Duke of York,

He had ten thousand men.

He marched them up to the top of the hill

And he marched them down again.

And when they were up, they were up.

And when they were down, they were down.

And when they were only halfway up,

They were neither up nor down.

On every up, your child goes up…

…and on every down they go down.

And then of course quick up and downs on that last fun line.

It’s a shame that I had to enlist family members to take pictures, because her smile at me was absolutely beatific, but the camera never quite caught it. Either way, it felt great to make her giggle with glee, and we’ll be doing this one often!